Grain producers, of which there are about 10 thousand in Moldova, threaten to come out for protesting in Chisinau if the Government does not solve the problem with purchasing prices on 2016 wheat and barley harvest within two weeks.

 

At the Monday’s news conference at Infotag, Alexandru Slusari, Chairman of the National Union of Agricultural Producers' Associations UniAgroProtect said that due to the monopoly in the grain market, as well as to the Competition Council’s inactivity, farmers are proposed a price on wheat at the level of 2.3 lei per 1 kg, while on barley – 1.9 lei.

 

“Such prices will lead to agrarians’ bankruptcy and losing of jobs in rural area, which will aggravate the problem of Moldovan villages’ extinction”, he said.

 

Agrarians provided examples of purchasing prices in neighboring countries – Romania and Ukraine, where the grain of new harvest is being purchased at a price of about 3 lei per 1 kg.

 

“For example in Odessa and Constanta ports, one kilogram of grain costs 3.3 lei, which does not correspond to the Moldovan price policy on the new grain”, said agrarians.

 

From their point of view, the society and the market were purposefully misled by irresponsible statements of Minister of Agriculture and Food Industry Eduard Grama, who said that the grain yield will account for 4.5 tons per ha, which never happened over the last 50 years.

 

As one of agrarians said, in other countries the Minister has to resign after such statements, as the real yield rate will hardly reach 3 tons per ha.

 

Agrarians criticized the Competition Council inactivity, which does not hurry to investigate signals about cartel agreement between grain buyers.

 

“On our address to the Council we get an answer, in which we are demanded to indicate all the grain producers, to present a list of all traders, who are buying grain, as well as confirm their agreement to answer to Council representatives’ questions”, Slusari said.

 

He said that he will not be surprised is the Council asks agrarians to provide a list of all the bread consumers in Moldova with indicating their ID card numbers.

 

Agrarians proposed to the Government to buy 120-150 thousand tons of grain for state needs, thus helping agrarians, who have to repay credits to banks.

 

“This will cost about 150 million lei, but it may immediately solve agrarians’ problems. In 2017 a bad harvest may occur and the purchasing prices on grain may grow, while the state will already have the 2016 grain in storages”, they say.

 

One of grain producers said that his investments per 1 ha of wheat accounted for 9.5 thousand lei. If purchasing prices will remain at the level of 2.3 lei per kilogram, his losses will account for 2.6 thousand lei per 1 ha on average.

 

Another agrarian said that over all the 18 years after the land privatization in Moldova, agrarians have never received a real support, neither understanding from the side of authorities.

 

Stakeholders pointed at the fact that they will suffer losses in the field of other cultures in 2016 due to the draught. According to them, 75% of the corn harvest is lost in the North of the country, 100% of soybean harvest, while the beat yield will account for not more than 15 tons per ha.

 

Infotag’s dossier: In case demands on increasing the purchasing power on new harvest grain are not satisfied and agrarians will come out to protests in Chisinau, their rallies will coincide with festivities in the main square, dedicated to the 25th anniversary of the Moldovan independence, celebrated on August 27.